Abstract : Electronic Map Data (EMD) is a generic term describing raster format databases created by scanning hardcopy maps or charts. EMD offers great potential as an interim solution for users requiring a digital 'picture' of the current paper products. It is more flexible than video disc image databases and can be generated quickly in significantly greater quantities than attributed vector databases. The U.S. Army will be a major consumer of EMD products as a source of geographic data prior to the production of Tactical Terrain Data (TTD) in the mid-1990's. This paper describes the origins of the Army's EMD product requirements as well as the current initiative to define and articulate that requirement to the Defense Mapping Agency (DMA).